Before you start doing any operations on the product function or service tape you have received, there is work you should do to your system to make sure it is ready and to be certain you can recover in case of a serious failure during installation.

Following are some of these steps:

1. Read the documentation for your new product. This includes the program directory and, if provided, an installation guide. Also check the IBM® Preventive Service Planning (PSP) files for the latest information about the product. This is important because there might be a PTF for the product that is not included in an ESO, or one of the PTFs may contain an error you should know about.
2. When you order a product, update the FMID list in the global zone with the FMIDs of the products you that you are receiving. (Check the program directory for this information.) After you make the update, you will receive any preventive service that is shipped between the time you order the product and the time you install it.
3. Read the program directory. It tells you which libraries are affected, whether any existing libraries must be expanded and by how much, and whether any new libraries are required.
4. Prepare the target and distribution libraries. If these libraries are properly prepared before you apply or accept a SYSMOD, little time is lost if an error occurs.

   List the VTOC of the target and distribution packs. This shows you which data sets are into their secondary extents, or are too full to contain additional elements that might be applied or accepted. If you are unsure how large a data set will grow, you may want to check full data sets against the SYSMODs you will be processing.

   Partitioned data sets with a high percentage of their space used can be compressed by use of IEBCOPY. If more space might be needed after the compression, allocate a larger data set and copy the nearly full data set into it; then delete the old data set. Rename the new one properly and, if it had to be allocated on a different pack, update any procedure necessary with the new VOLUME data.

   This preparation is time-consuming but takes less time and work than recovering from an out-of-space abend (E37, B37, and so on).

   SMP/E command operands can also help you handle out-of-space abends.

   • The COMPRESS operand tells SMP/E to compress the data sets before they are updated; this can help you avoid an x37 ABEND. For more information about the COMPRESS operand, see SMP/E for z/OS Commands.
   • The RETRY(YES) operand tells SMP/E to attempt recovery after an x37 ABEND occurs by compressing the affected data sets and retrying the failing utility. If you still need space after SMP/E's initial retry attempt and input to the utility was batched (copy or link-edit utility only), SMP/E debatches the input and retries the utility separately for each member. For information about this retry processing, see Recovering after errors from utility processing.
5. Allocate any new libraries required. Determine where they are to be allocated and then allocate them. Remember that the program directory ordinarily shows how much space will be used. It does not show how much space to allocate for the libraries. Allocate the libraries with more space than required to allow for later modifications. Usually, twice the required space is recommended to allow for the replacement of every element in the library without running out of space.

   Remember to add the appropriate DDDEF entries to the target zones and DLIB zones into which you will install this function.

6. Check the SMP/E data sets to make sure that they have enough space. If necessary, compress or expand the partitioned data sets. A data set that is easily overlooked in this process is the SMPSTS, which fills rapidly when you are receiving source updates (JES2 and JES3, for example). Reorganize or expand (if necessary) the CSI data set (using access method services EXPORT and IMPORT).
7. Create a backup for the volumes affected. This is a important step that should not be overlooked. Without a current backup copy, a serious system failure during installation means not only redoing the installation in process but also means going to the last backup level and redoing all the work done since then.
8. Estimate the time required for APPLY and ACCEPT processing. Make sure that enough time is available to allow these jobs to run to completion.

   The program directory or installation guide might contain information to help you estimate the time required.